The fascinating counterpoint of Lamentation letters

For the footnotes and other extra information see the following link:
www.earlymusicsources.com/youtube/letters
Created by Elam Rotem, July 2023.
Music examples from Lasso’s Lamentations were recorded especially for this episode by ensemble Profeti della Quinta with Giovanna Baviera, Doron Schleifer, Jacob Lawrence and Elam Rotem; excerpts from Cavalieri’s Lamentations are taken from Profeti della Quinta’s upcoming recording of the piece (Emilio de’ Cavalieri: LAMENTATIONS; Pan Classics, September 2023).
Special thanks to Enrico Correggia, Peter Schubert and Anne Smith.
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[@GBN_01]

Elam: "I could really sit here for hours and show you with much enthusiasm many beautiful letters of other composers, but..." Me: "Yes, please do." *grabs popcorn*

[@jonathanlippard1730]

I am hopelessly behind on EMS videos. Probably because I grab my synth and play along (usually slowly), whilst telling everyone even remotely interested in music what an awesome channel this is. No regrets.

[@ultramet]

Can we take a moment to recognize that Elam is not only teaching us these fascinating Lamentation letters concepts but he’s “crushing” the Hebrew in this video, his native tongue. Just sounds so beautiful when he pronounces the Hebrew flawlessly! ❤ this video series!

[@rafaguay5804]

As a liturgist and church musician, I knew right from 0:12 that this was gonna be good!

[@btat16]

The little modified Jingles are always a real treat! I can tell this will be another fantastic video

[@kyrieeleison2793]

One of the most moving Catholic services, which can still be found in Latin Mass parishes. After each lamentation, a candle is extinguished until the church is dark. The sound of banging/stomping (ie strepitus) from throughout the pews symbolizing the earthquake that followed Christ's death. The first Tenebrae is traditionally anticipated for Holy Thursday, being celebrated on the evening of Spy Wednesday.

[@AlexandraZernerRocks]

Your channel is one of the most precious things on KZbin! And when you feature Lassus on top of that, it's a pure bliss! Thank you!

[@dlevi67]

Your analogy of the letters being like the illuminated capitals is so appropriate. Thank you so much for another little illuminated and illuminating gem of a video, Elam!

[@VaughanMcAlley]

I love the predictable structure of Lamentations: Intro, letter, text, letter, text, letter, text, Jerusalem… I have written music for one reading’s worth of lamentations and am in awe of the renaissance composers who set the whole cycle (multiple times) and managed to keep things fresh. Palestrina Lamentations are a masterclass in achieving powerful effects with (for example) five voices with the total range of two octaves.

[@whycantiremainanonymous8091]

8:30: It's the tenth letter, so tenths are in place

[@Beryllahawk]

I had no idea about the Lamentations, so I learned a huge amount in this video! And these are so gorgeous, too. As always, beautifully sung and excellently discussed! Thank you!!

[@chong2389]

Thank you Elam. This video brought back the memories of my first year music history class at university. I had never heard such beautiful music. Understanding the context of a work adds immeasurably to my enjoyment. Parts of 'the puzzzle' snap together to make a simple line drawing into a three dimensional colour holograph.

[@the_number_e]

Leçons de ténèbres from the French baroque have been some of my absolutely favorite pieces. The melismas on the letters are always so gorgeous, but I never realized that this is what they were, thank you!

[@es_ist_unmoeglich]

Rameau's troisieme leçon de ténèbres is true beauty...

[@Gregorianus37]

The Couperin lessons are a frequently-sung favorite of the Schola Sainte-Céciile in Paris.

[@marcduhamel-guitar1985]

Old music that's new to me. Love your channel, keep up the awesome academic work and brilliant performances ! Cheers !

[@videnteloco]

I still cant believe this great channel doesnt have more subs. Fantastic channel.

[@andrewgrant9782]

Fascinating! And some beautiful singing too.

[@petrparizek9945]

Thank you for this. I've heard Tallis's Lamentations many times but I've never thought about this before. For me his version is simply outstanding just because I would only expect some of his contrapuntal ideas to be found in something like 19th century music, not in late 16th century music. And by the way, his "Dalet" caught my attention every single time I heard it (and the very final section as well).

[@paolovolante]

Hello, I would like to propose a possible subject for a video: the harmonic analysis of Monteverdi's "Si dolc'è il tormento". I deeply looked at it from a jazz arranger point of view and I found the harmony very surprising. It's an AB structure and while the A is quite predictable the B is very "jazzy", in my understanding. I think it would be interesting to see from an Early Music expert as you how this composition fits into the music rules of the Monteverdi's time or how much it breaks them. Thank you for your wonderful videos. p.s. I based my analysis on the Lea Desandre & Thibault Cauvin version of this composition.

[@simongross3122]

Thank you for sharing these. They are absolutely gorgeous.

[@MathiasMuller-wz1if]

Danke!

[@amicus1766]

The "Lamed" is such a cry of the heart all on it's own - beautiful and wonderful, especially with the ornamentation.

[@KennyRegan]

I think this must be the best channel on KZbin. EXCELLENT work all around!

[@edwardkershaw6916]

The Cavalieri is very scrunchy. Love it!

[@KarstenJohansson]

I learn so much from watching these episodes. It's all information that I've never seen anywhere else. Who knows... one day I just might understand it enough to write an authentic piece! :D

[@jacekzajac8356]

No instrument sound better in polyphony than human voice. That should not be surprising from the stand point of physiology. Your passion for the subject is infectious and your talent in conveying your knowledge is great. 😊👍

[@vrixphillips]

Lamentations and settings of the Tenebrae are some of my favorite works of Renaissance music! thanks so much for this episode

[@maxjohn6012]

So pleased to see Osbert Parsley mentioned in your list! I was a chorister at Norwich Cathedral, and one of my cats is named after him :) Beautiful music and a fascinating video, as always! The Cavalieri at the end were a particularly exquisite treat. Thanks so much for all you hard work.

[@BernardGreenberg]

The _Lamentations_ having been among my favorite forms/genres forever, my personal favorite "letter settings" heretofore have been those of François Couperin, for two sopranos and continuo, mostly built around canons at the second, producing exquisite 2-3 and 7-6 suspensions almost everywhere. The exquisite grace of these little perorations knows few equals.

[@alexcitron5159]

So far you're making early music much more friendly than they did in music school - bravo!

[@leonidasdeguevara7146]

Maravilloso trabajo... As usual 👌👌👌👌👌

[@lcerante]

This was a master class! Many thanks, wonderful video and excellent demonstration.

[@smuecke]

19:47 This is one of the most beautiful cadences I have ever heard. Jacob is incredible.

[@IsaacOtto]

Always thrilled with each new topic. I'm reminded of the Qur'an cantors who sing these mysterious, seemingly arbitrary letters before each verse -- e.g. "alif lam mim" -- set to beautiful melismas.

[@liammcooper]

very interesting

[@TenorCantusFirmus]

Probably a common Abrahamic/Semitic provenience (right away, I can also notice similarities between the names of Hebrew and Arabic letters despite having never studied neither Language). Not a surprise it also have passed down into Catholic polyphonic music.

[@prototropo]

I love the general feature of Arabic music to use lots of melismatic figuration. It might be the first thing a Western ear hears, even before microtonal scales.

[@therealzilch]

Another typically informative and charming video. Thanks again, Elam. Cheers from cloudy Vienna, Scott

[@mylesjordan9970]

Fabulous work. Thank you, Elam, and all who participated! The idea of variation in repetition is still present in Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven; their recapitulated materials may differ slightly from how they appear in expositions. Between the turn of the nineteenth century and our own time, an anachronistic academic convention established total conformity between iterations of the same materials, so the advent of the Urtext movement baffled performers trained in the early twentieth century. They felt they had to cherry-pick between details to “correct” the score. Seeing the end of this video would have saved Zoltán Székely countless hours; it provides the clear historical context for what he considered irrational anomalies.

[@Remi-B-Goode]

the complex montages of your vids are impressive, and the subjects very interesting and well explained; thank you!

[@stepanjandl9275]

Another amazing video full of interesting information! Thank you :)

[@jonaswolfmusic1775]

Since I see it mentioned nowhere else, let me just say: the recordings are extremely beautiful!!!

[@wrmacdonald9383]

Thank you. Having been away, I was very happy to become reacquainted through this elegant presentation.

[@raphaeladams4985]

I note that this podcast was released on the Hebrew date of 17 Tammuz which ushers in a 3 week period of mourning over the destruction of the Temple and is concluded by the reading of Lamentations. I have minimal musical background but I appreciate the magnificence of this podcast in terms of the presentation quality, scholarship and, most of all, enthusiasm. Yasher koach.

[@luisdavidcastillo1187]

One of the most beautiful works that I have had the opportunity to sing has undoubtedly been the lamentation of Torrejón and Velasco, I sang it with the Camerata of Caracas, and it is a work that will never be extinguished in my heart, if you do not know it, you will know I recommend 1000 times ❤️

[@evilscientistrecords]

Thank you for bringing this phenomenon to our attention and providing so many examples!!!!

[@NichtWunderkind]

Wonderful

[@davidecirillo9675]

If you're looking for a modern counterpoint rendition of the Lamentations letters, I recommend listening to Igor Stravinsky's "Threni", an important work from his serial period.

[@dbadagna]

Stravinsky may have gotten the idea to compose this piece from Ernst Krenek, who had composed a setting of the Lamentations, "Lamentatio Jeremiae prophetae," in 1941-1942.

[@GoodSneakers]

A beautiful episode. “Compact and clear”, so true, so lovely. ❤

[@carlstenger5893]

Yet another brilliant video. Thank you so much. I don't know which I enjoy more: the wonderful analysis and teaching, or the beautiful music.

[@billymeyer99]

Bellissima! thank you for another facinating and beautiful show.

[@markdpricemusic1574]

Many, many, many, many, many , many thanks for this lucid and wonderful exposition!

[@thormusique]

So beautiful, thank you! I've long been fascinated by de' Cavalieri's style, which seems quite bold and unapologetic in its eccentricities. Although there were certainly any number of contemporaneous Italian composers one might describe that way, I think that de' Cavalieri, having also been something of a diplomat, would have come across as especially sure of himself. At least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it! ;-) Cheers!

[@michaelschmitt2427]

Very, very beautiful. Thanks for a wonderful episode.

[@cuttwice3905]

I like how there were tenths of Yod; it is apt as can be.

[@jessicarowley9631]

Another great video absolutely packed with explanation and demonstration of composition techniques. Thank you all for this.

[@mauricioamf]

The tenor was on fire!!!!! Beautiful flores

[@manelvidiella8004]

Thank you very much for your work, it is awesome!!!!

[@toccataforte]

I have ALWAYS wondered about this. Tallis' were just so captivating...

[@brunocoliveira89]

Thank you!!!!!

[@Arthur94]

Fascinating ! And as usual, well sung. Than you !

[@nixonkutz3018]

Brilliant, sublime, stunningly beautiful

[@danyelnicholas]

Wonderful, thank you-made me curious to hear the record. The excerpts are exhilarating.

[@adriangraumann9847]

Fascinante! Si algún cantante en Madrid está viendo esto: quedamos para improvisar polifonía?

[@Nooticus]

Absolutely excellent video, entertaining and informative throughout!

[@Gregorianus37]

It's that time of year where my attention turns to the Lamentations, of which the plainchant melody given in the official, twentieth-century edition is almost identical to the one shown in this video, although there were other versions, notably in the Mozarabic liturgy (which is Latin but not Roman), and there is a fairly elaborate version for the Prayer of Jeremiah that concludes the reading of Lamentations on Holy Saturday.

[@HighWideandHandsome]

Thanks again for another extremely informative video, and also for letting me know about Kendrick's book in your footnotes.

[@BombardierJake]

This was fascinating, thank you! I already had an interest in Renaissance music, but you have opened up a whole new avenue for me, so thank you.

[@natheniel]

The final few clips of performances are just exquisite.

[@dhackj]

Beautiful lecture!

[@en-blanc-et-noir]

top notch video!

[@danielfajardo9092]

Me encanta la creatividad de estos videos y de las ultimas interpretaciones❤❤

[@fabianoderore296]

If only the composer's feather of Rossi's successor in spirit would finally approach the lamentationes with its transformative touch so that we will be able to listen to them in their original linguistic beauty... 😇

[@RonLWilson]

Very interesting!

[@monscarmeli]

The comparison to illuminated letters in manuscripts was perfect -- they're musical illuminations!

[@monscarmeli]

wanted to also share my fav letter, from Tallis' first Lamentations setting: kzbin.infoUgkxMpfSIM1FeeW5gtYynKeWxDFlxySiwPK5

[@bifeldman]

Marvelous

[@CamQTR]

wOW, I wish that my professors in college were as good as Early Music Sources.

[@AnandaGarden]

Very enjoyable.

[@yoavshati]

אני חייב לנסות להלחין כמה כאלה. בלי שאר הטקסט אפילו, רק האותיות

[@Jantsenpr777]

Shalom, shalom, Elam!

[@ProfRonanMC]

The Cavalieri is amazing - I can't wait to hear it all! The wrench, in Heth, with c-natural colliding with the previous c-sharp is a show-stopper.

[@MenelionFR]

Thank you so much Elam! I believe it's the first time I heard you speaking Hebrew.

[@theofraslin3449]

Just discovered your channel, and so glad I did. Not only I find early sacred music fascinating, but the historic explanations you provide are truely enlightening and interesting as well. I don't know yet if you've already did it, but if it's something you might find interesting, I'd love to hear you explain Gesualdo's madrigals and Hildegard von Bingen's works also, that would be a real pleasure. Those two composers really amaze me. Thank you very much for this video !

[@tedalper1464]

Wow! I can't decide if this is seasonally appropriate as Tisha B'Av is approaching when Eichah is read (with its own haunting cantillation), or seasonally inappropriate as music is avoided during the three weeks. But this was really illuminating, I sang Thomas Tallis's version in college some 40 years ago and noticed the setting included those beautiful cadences for the verse numbers/hebrew letters before each verse; I was also well aware that the original hebrew text of [almost] every chapter is in acrostic form lost in the latin we sung. But I never thought to wonder why the letters were included at all in these christian liturgical settings.

[@metodsironic]

❤

[@melodicaat]

Elam speaking hebrew! זה כזה מוזר לי אבל מגניב בו זמנית :)

[@hunterharris4869]

Utopia has a wonderful recording of Morales's Lamentations and the Passionarium Toletanum.

[@d.j.j.g]

Eloquent, elegant, accurate (those fantastic perfect fifths you all sing!), and wonderful. Thank you so much!

[@BarnabyWalters]

“I’d love to make a long video but that’s not how youtube works” - nope, that’s what people use streaming or second channels for! I’m sure a large portion of your audience would love occasional longer, less formal/structured videos about topics you’re enthusiastic about. I definitely would…

[@marinapegrisch1305]

Always adooore your pineapplelamp !!🤗

[@kyle-silver]

I can’t help but think of the Promenade theme from Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. Anyone else?

[@elenin.3228]

You and your team are the best thing that ever happened to y/t. This is Musi Aademy level! Oh, and some more Hebrew, please! I love the sound of it!😁

[@alexandrusimo899]

please do frescobaldi's prefaces to his toccate!

[@Christianvs1997]

Your Hebrew pronunciation is good Elam!

[@AndreaColombo-fx1wh]

He is Isreali

[@carlapr97]

Hi Elam! What do you think about Palestrina’s Lamentations? Do you have some listening recommendations when it comes to him? Thanks!

[@ombracaradaverno9289]

Dear @earlymusicsources, are you and Propheti Della Quinta planning on a recording of these beautiful collection of Lamentations? Unfortunately, i can only find records of Lassus' for 5 voices...

[@EarlyMusicSources]

I'm afraid not, sorry. But you can check our recent recording of Cavalieri's Lamentations!

[@ombracaradaverno9289]

Alas, what a pity.. but thank you for the Cavalieri recommendation! And please keep up the good work, your videos give me great joy and insight 😊

[@BethDiane]

I think the Ashamnu is composed with the same structure, each successive sin beginning with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. I once went to a Reform Yom Kippur service that included a second, more modernized Ashamnu, collectively composed (in English) by the congregation and read out by the rabbi. It too lacked the alphabetic element.

[@fnjesusfreak]

The letter feature does appear even in English bibles, but only in Psalm 119.

[@aprendendoguita2119]

7:35

[@Yamikaiba123]

In time for the 9 of Abib!

[@jimbullock4156]

Dear Mr. Rotem, 50 years ago while in college I encountered an early vocal method treatise that in its preface instructed the student to place the wine cork between the molars while practicing the exercises. I do not recall the author or title. Do you perhaps know this source? Thanks.

[@EarlyMusicSources]

It is from the 1922 book "The Voice Beautiful in Speech and Song" by Ernest George White. Many thanks to Lisandro Abadie for knowing this!

[@jimbullock4156]

Thank you.

[@whatever2045]

Where can I listen to all the letters?

[@sunkenindeaf]

Great work, as usual. Thank you. Being musically illiterate does not prevent from enjoying these videos. 17:56 --- If I may ask about the photograph: Harmelin and Rumsey (?) at the back, then Schleifer and Paulin, Lawrence on the right --who is the person on the left foreground?

[@TenorCantusFirmus]

Beautiful and ingenious, albeit my favourite Lamentations are still those by Palestrina. Remembering them, I can now identify the "Hebrew Alphabet Motif" therein too, I think he actually used it in all the Letters.

[@xmarteo]

The term "Breviary" is somewhat anachronistic when talking about the origins of the hebrew letters in Lamentations settings, because the earliest Lamentations settings predate the earliest Breviaries by a few centuries. If anything, the hebrew letters were printed in the Breviaries *because* they were in the musical settings, not the other way around. But also, saying that the letters are present in the musical settings because they were in the Vulgate on which the settings were composed, while true, is not exactly sufficient, because the book of Lamentations is sung in Matins Lessons on *other days* than Tenebrae days, and in those days, the hebrew letters are not said.

[@xmarteo]

Also I really like the analogy with illuminated letters in the mss.